Business

Oil Price Increases As OPEC Projects Slow Growth In 2022

Published

4 years ago

January 4, 2022

Editor

The price of Brent, the crude against which Nigeria’s oil is priced, increased marginally on Monday as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries projected a slow growth momentum in terms of economic recovery this year.

Also, OPEC announced the appointment of its next Secretary-General, expected to assume office in August 2022, following the expiration of the second term of Nigeria’s Sanusi Barkindo, in July.

Oil price figures seen in Abuja on Monday showed that the cost of Brent appreciated by 1.12 per cent or $0.87 to $78.65 per barrel as at 5.10pm Nigerian time.

It was further observed that price increases were also recorded in oil grades in the OPEC Basket and WTI crude on Monday.

Crude oil in the OPEC Basket rose to $77.97 per barrel, representing a 5.04 per cent or $3.74 rise as at 5.10pm, when compared to what was posted the previous day.

For WTI crude, the commodity appreciated marginally in price, as it increased by 0.73 per cent or $0.55 to $75.76 as at 5.10pm on Monday.

Meanwhile, in his opening remarks at the 58th Meeting of the Joint Technical Committee via videoconference on Monday, Barkindo expressed hope that the oil sector would record progress in 2022, but stressed that the challenges posed by the Omicron variant of COVID-19 had been tough.

The OPEC scribe noted that the world had learnt several hard lessons over the past two years, as many economies were now better equipped today to manage COVID-19 and its side effects.

“Despite the steady progress that has been made in terms of the economic recovery, we do expect significant levels of uncertainty in the weeks to come, which could slow the growth momentum,” Barkindo, however, stated.

This came as a special meeting of the conference of OPEC, which was held via videoconference on Monday, under the Chairmanship of its President, Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua, announced the appointment of a new Secretary-General for the oil cartel.

OPEC disclosed this in a statement issued by the Vienna-based organisation after the special meeting.

“In accordance with Article 28 of the OPEC Statute and in application of the procedure decided at the 182nd meeting of the conference on December 1, 2021, the conference decided by acclamation to appoint by Mr. Haitham Al-Ghais of Kuwait as Secretary-General of the organisation, with effect from August 1, 2022, for a period of three years,” the statement read in part.

It described Al-Ghais as a veteran of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Kuwait’s OPEC Governor from 2017 to June 2021, as he currently serves as Deputy Managing Director for International Marketing at KPC.

The conference also expressed its appreciation to Nigeria’s Sanusi Barkindo for his leadership during his two-term tenure as Secretary-General beginning on August 1, 2016 and ending on July 31, 2022.

Barkindo is a long-serving veteran of Nigeria’s oil industry and OPEC, who has been instrumental in expanding OPEC’s historical efforts to support sustainable oil market stability through enhanced dialogue and cooperation with many energy stakeholders, including the landmark Declaration of Cooperation since its inception in December 2016.

These efforts are widely credited with helping to stabilise the global oil market since the unprecedented market downturn related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and providing a platform for recovery.

Before being appointed Secretary-General, Barkindo held a number of key roles at OPEC between 1986 and 2010, including acting Secretary-General in 2006.

He is known internationally for helping to produce the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto protocol as the leader of Nigeria’s technical delegation to the UN negotiations in 1991.

He has remained a key contributor to the UNFCCC process, including most recently at the 26th Conference of Parties meeting in Glasgow in October and November 2021.

(PUNCH)

Business

CBN Directs Nigerian Banks To Withdraw Misleading Advertisement

Published

6 hours ago

November 28, 2025

Editor

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed Nigerian banks, payment service banks and other financial institutions to immediately withdraw all advertisements that violate consumer-protection rules.

The directive, issued in a circular dated Thursday and signed by Olubunmi Ayodele-Oni, director of the CBN’s compliance department, followed a review of marketing practices in the financial sector.

The apex bank said the assessment revealed inconsistencies in how institutions apply disclosure, transparency and fair-marketing requirements.

The CBN ordered the removal of all non-compliant adverts and warned that future promotional materials must be factual, balanced and transparent.

It banned misleading claims, exaggerated benefits, incomplete information, unaudited financial results and comparative language that could de-market competitors.
The regulator of Nigeria’s financial sector also prohibited chance-based promotional inducements such as lotteries, prize draws and lucky dips.

Accordingly, institutions submitting adverts for prior notification must now include campaign timelines, creative materials, target audience details and written confirmation of internal legal and compliance clearance, along with proof that the underlying product has CBN approval.

The bank clarified that such notifications are only for monitoring and do not amount to approval.
All affected institutions must file a compliance attestation within 30 days, signed by the chief executive and compliance leads.

The CBN added that beginning January 2026, it will conduct a follow-up review and apply sanctions for violations under BOFIA 2020 and the Consumer Protection Regulations.

Business

Fourteen Nigerian Banks Yet To Meet CBN’s Recapitalisation Ahead Of Deadline

Published

1 day ago

November 27, 2025

Editor

No fewer than 14 Nigerian commercial banks are yet to meet the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recapitalisation requirement as the 31st March 2026 deadline inches closer.

This follows CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso’s announcement on Tuesday that sixteen Nigerian banks have met their recapitalisation requirement ahead of the apex bank’s March 2026 deadline.

DAILY POST reports that Cardoso disclosed this in a statement after the bank’s 303rd Monetary Policy Committee in Abuja.

According to Cardoso, the development indicates that there is financial soundness in the country’s financial banking system.

MPC had been urged by banks to ensure a successful implementation of the recapitalisation process.

“The committee noted with satisfaction the sustained resilience of the banking system, with most financial soundness indicators remaining within regulatory thresholds,” Cardoso said.

“Acknowledged the substantial progress in the ongoing recapitalisation programme, with 16 banks achieving full compliance with the revised capital requirements.

“The committee thus urged the Bank to ensure a successful implementation and conclusion of the programme, among other domestic developments,” Cardoso said.

This means that two additional Nigerian banks have been added to the list of banks which have complied with the apex bank recapitalisation requirement in the last two months.

Recall that Cardoso, in the 302nd MPC meeting, announced that only fourteen banks have met the recapitalisation requirement.

CBN records as of 2024 showed that the country has thirteen commercial banks, five merchant banks and seven financial holdings companies.

Earlier, a report emerged that Access Bank, Zenith Bank, GTBank, Wema Bank, Jaiz Bank, Stanbic IBTC, and others have already met CBN’s recapitalisation requirement.

CBN in March directed commercial banks with international authorisation to increase their capital base to N500 billion, while those with national licences must raise to N200 billion.

Business

CBN Retains Interest Rate At 27%

Published

3 days ago

November 25, 2025

Editor

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria has voted to retain the benchmark interest rate at 27 per cent.

CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, announced the decision on Tuesday following the apex bank’s 303rd MPC meeting in Abuja.

Cardoso stated that the committee also resolved to keep all other monetary policy indicators unchanged.

He noted that the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) remains at 45 per cent for commercial banks and 16 per cent for merchant banks, while the 75 per cent CRR on non-TSA public sector deposits was equally maintained.

Cardoso added that the Liquidity Ratio was retained at 30 per cent, and the Standing Facilities Corridor was adjusted to +50/-450 basis points around the Monetary Policy Rate.

The decision comes as Nigeria records its seventh consecutive month of declining inflation, which eased to 16.05 per cent in September 2025.